Our Ancient Faith: Lincoln, Democracy, and the American Experiment

by Allen C. Guelzo

An intimate study of Abraham Lincoln’s powerful vision of democracy, which guided him through the Civil War and is still relevant today—by a best-selling historian and three-time winner of the Lincoln Prize

*Winner of the 2024 Abraham Lincoln Institute Book Prize*
*Finalist for the 2025 Gilder Lehrman Lincoln Prize*

"It is altogether fitting and proper that, with this meditation on democracy and its most subtle defender, Allen Guelzo again demonstrates that he is today’s most profound interpreter of this nation’s history and significance." —George F. Will

Abraham Lincoln grappled with the greatest crisis of democracy that has ever confronted the United States. While many books have been written about his temperament, judgment, and steady hand in guiding the country through the Civil War, we know less about Lincoln’s penetrating ideas and beliefs about democracy, which were every bit as important as his character in sustaining him through the crisis.

Allen C. Guelzo, one of America’s foremost experts on Lincoln, captures the president’s firmly held belief that democracy was the greatest political achievement in human history. He shows how Lincoln’s deep commitment to the balance between majority and minority rule enabled him to stand firm against secession while also committing the Union to reconciliation rather than recrimination in the aftermath of war. In bringing his subject to life as a rigorous and visionary thinker, Guelzo assesses Lincoln’s actions on civil liberties and his views on race, and explains why his vision for the role of government would have made him a pivotal president even if there had been no Civil War. Our Ancient Faith gives us a deeper understanding of this endlessly fascinating man and shows how his ideas are still sharp and relevant more than 150 years later.

Genres: History, Politics, Biography, Nonfiction, Presidents, American History, Civil War

Audible Audio

First published February 6, 2024

About the author

Allen Carl Guelzo (born 1953) is the Henry R. Luce III Professor of the Civil War Era at Gettysburg College, where he serves as Director of the Civil War Era Studies Program.

Reviews

[Brendan (History Nerds United) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Caution readers! I am about to pontificate!

Allen Guelzo did a dangerous thing when he wrote Our Ancient Faith. He made me think. The book is not necessarily a full celebration of democracy but more of a reminder that it is a pretty good way of doing things. He illustrates his thinking by looking at one of the greatest (and in many scholars' minds THE greatest) U.S. President, Abraham Lincoln. You may have heard of him!

Guelzo starts with a bunch of philosophy where he defines democracy and its component parts. Yes, I know. It sounds like a snoozefest. However, it's quite good which is saying something because I abhor philosophy! The book is short (less than 200 pages of text), and this portion is just setting the stage for the main subject. Quickly, we are talking about our favorite ugly president (don't get mad at me, it's how he described himself), Honest Abe. (Note: I will be using various nicknames I found for Lincoln in the rest of this review and they get progressively more bizarre. You are welcome.)

I want to be clear that Guelzo is not painting a saintly picture of the Great Emancipator. Yes, this book does highlight the significant positive attributes of the Rail-Splitter. On the other hand, Guelzo calls out the places the Grand Wrestler falls short. Guelzo takes us to a time when our democracy was in its greatest peril and shows how the Ancient One's love for our American system kept it from dying an ignoble death.

I would be remiss if I didn't point out what some other reviewers have commented on. Yes, in 2024, there are a lot of BIG feelings about the government. I don't feel like Guelzo was writing a book to tell people, "It's fine, stop whining. You are overreacting." Instead, I think this book is about not falling prey to cynicism as the default for our national outlook. We still need to take threats to our democracy seriously. Democracy depends on us to defend it, or it will fall. Guelzo is just giving us an example to aspire to. As far as role models go, we could do a lot worse than Uncle Abe. (Ok, that last nickname wasn't the most bizarre, but I wanted to end this review strong and "the Tycoon" is a dumb nickname and would have ruined my flow.)

(This book was provided as a review copy by Alfred A. Knopf.)

[Bill · Rating 2 out of 5]

If there's one thing I can't stand, it's the recent genre of history that compares our fraught present times with the past, in order to pat us on the shoulder and reassure us that "we've gotten through worse, so we'll get through this, too." Maybe it's true, maybe not, but it seems to trivialize our current problems by telling us that they're not as bad as we think they are, and that they will just work themselves out somehow.

American democracy seems a bit imperiled at the moment. So Allen Guelzo takes us back to Abraham Lincoln's time, to examine his philosophy on democracy and what we can learn from him today. And go figure, it turns out we’ve gotten through worse, so we’ll get through this, too!

I have found Guelzo to be an excellent writer and storyteller. But this book is no story. It's a shorter, dryly academic version of the more accessible And There Was Light: Abraham Lincoln and the American Struggle by Jon Meacham, both of which highlight Lincoln's greatness, put into context and mostly forgive his faults, and chide those who criticize him today, for not fully understanding him. But Meacham's book is a historical biography that mostly avoids presentism, while Guelzo seems to begin with presentism and works his way backwards.

This book begins by obliquely referencing the political challenges and divisions of today, both-sidesing the situation somewhat by observing that democracies can either descend into selfishness and cruelty, gravitating toward authoritarianism in the process, or they can be so inclusive that they stifle achievement and success, by trying to force everyone to conform to a lowest common denominator. A lack of common mores, of a common "underlying set of agreed assumptions," imperils democracy, Guelzo writes. And in segueing to Lincoln, he observes that "those who have been the most distrustful of Abraham Lincoln have displayed more than a little distrust of democracy, too."

What follows is essentially a series of essays on Lincoln, and what inspired and animated his thoughts on democracy, with a liberal dose of Lincoln's own words throughout. I will admit that political theory and discourse about the books Lincoln studied and the various thinkers who influenced his belief system are not really my areas of interest when it comes to Lincoln. So at first I thought this book just wasn’t for me. Maybe I’m just too dumb to get what Guelzo is trying to say, because honestly, who knows more about Lincoln, Allen Guelzo, or me?

But in time, I began to question how and why Guelzo was attempting to frame this as a discussion of democracy at all. From his earliest days in politics, Lincoln was always strongly in favor of economic self-determination, and leveraging the influence of the federal government to help provide people with what they needed to succeed. He was also strongly anti-slavery, which was consistent with his economic views - slavery obviously denied Black people economic opportunity, but it also disadvantaged white laborers, particularly in the territories, who couldn’t compete against slave labor if it was allowed to expand.

So Lincoln’s opposition to slavery was, at its root, largely an economic concern, coupled with his belief in the natural right to freedom as expressed in the Declaration of Independence. I don’t know that Lincoln opposed slavery with the express aim of allowing free Blacks to become full participants in the democratic political process. Even postwar Black citizenship and voting rights were not the result of a newfound egalitarianism or a commitment to democracy on Lincoln’s part, so much as an acknowledgement of and payback for Black soldiers’ loyalty and service, a check on the southern political dominance of unreconstructed whites, and a desire to better integrate freed slaves into postwar life in order for them to become self-sufficient and not a drain on society.

Guelzo seems to impose observations about democracy on Lincoln that are more his observations than Lincoln’s. Democracy requires the consent of the governed, he writes, while slavery is imposed on the enslaved without their consent, therefore he concludes that Lincoln believed slavery was incompatible with democracy. Slavery was also a violation of natural law, Guelzo goes on, so he concludes that Lincoln was opposed to allowing popular sovereignty to determine when and where slavery could spread, because "democracy could not survive… by leaving fundamental moral issues to be decided by majority vote."

I don’t know that Lincoln would disagree with these ideas. I just think he had other things than democracy in mind at the time. So to ascribe his belief system to a reverence for democracy seemed to me far too narrow a lens with which to view him.

The Gettysburg Address is probably the most prominent example of Lincoln, at least indirectly, musing on democracy, wondering whether the American experiment of “government of the people, by the people, for the people” could survive. The address may have been the best articulation of his thoughts about democracy and its fragility, but it’s not fully explored in that context here. Instead, Guelzo seems to presume that the Northern victory ultimately settled the question once and for all, and our democracy is therefore resilient enough to survive current and future threats.

That leads us to the book’s conclusion, which circles back to concerns about the resilience of democracy today. Don’t worry, Guelzo concludes. There may be serious frustrations and fears about the future of our political system, but "the American democracy has endured, risen and surmounted them once, and will do so again,” he writes reassuringly, if not entirely convincingly. “Democracies tend to wait until a situation gets completely out of hand, and only then gather their full strength for a solution." And then they tend to simply "spring back from catastrophes."

He goes on to both-sides our present challenges again, by seeming to blame career government bureaucrats (without going so far as to actually use the phrase “Deep State”) for doing as much to erode democracy as truth-deniers and would-be election-overthrowing authoritarians. It’s a weak correlation. The former has existed for quite some time, while the latter is a newer phenomenon that poses a threat to our democracy unlike any we’ve experienced before. Guelzo tries to envision a "Lincolnian future" where we apply his lessons to today, but it reads less like a road map than a reassurance. To essentially say, there, there, it will work out because it always does, is not the lesson I think we should be learning from Lincoln.

If we are to learn anything from Lincoln, it’s that democracy is not self-sustaining. We must protect it, participate in it, and fight for it if necessary. Democracy may not have been in the forefront of Lincoln’s mind as he focused on extending economic opportunities to the common man, or later preserving the Union and eliminating slavery. But lulling us into complacency by suggesting that Lincoln saved democracy so we don’t have to, seems just as dangerous to our democracy as any of the current threats we face.

Thanks to NetGalley and Knopf for the advance copy of this book, ahead of its February 6th release.

[Clif Hostetler · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author Allen C.Guelzo begins this book with an introduction that describes the disposition of democracy and why in human history it is so unusual and prone to failure. Some critics of democracy have concluded it is too weak to survive the forces of authoritarianism while other critics believe democracies have evolved to be too strong and have become allies with political authoritarianism. It’s at this point that Guelzo introduces the rest of the book with, “It will be worth our while to examine what he [Abraham Lincoln] says about democracy.”

Guelzo has written a number of other books about Lincoln. Abraham Lincoln: Redeemer President (1999) and Lincoln: A Very Short Introduction, (2009) So what prompts the writing of this book at this time? Apparently Guelzo sees threats to American democracy in today’s political climate and, referring to Lincoln, he puts it thus, “I take up his principles with the yearning that once again, this last, best hope of earth may yet have a new birth of freedom.”

The subtitle of this book is descriptive of the book's content, but I was a bit puzzled by the title, Our Ancient Faith, which conjures religious material in my mind. The title is based on an 1854 speech by Lincoln that identified the Declaration of Independence as the source of his "ancient faith."

If the negro is a man, why then my ancient faith teaches me that ‘all men are created equal;’ and that there can be no moral right in connection with one man’s making a slave of another.

This book explores what Lincoln thought about various aspects of democracy in America while also providing historical and philosophical context along the way. Perhaps some of the remedies Lincoln offered as a defense of the “American experiment” can also serve us today.

Below are my brief summaries of each chapter. The summaries are a mixture of my writing and excerpts that are edited such that I don't provide quotation marks in many cases.

1. The Cause of Human Liberty

It is important to be continually vigilant, even in a democracy, because there are too many who are only too happy to be masters and have others as slaves. Thus democratic government needs sufficient guardrails to encourage patience while the democratic process works its way through issues and conflicts.

2. Law, Reason, and Passion

Calm reasoning recognizes that respect for criminal and civil law permits citizens to live in peace. But passions caused by perceived differences in ways of life between the North and South led to the Civil War. As the war came to a close the danger of anger and malice on the part of the victors posed a threat to social and political healing. Also, passion motivated the assassin's bullet.

3. An American System

Promoters of free labor loved "the old Puritan character," not for its "theological doctrines," but for its strenuous commitment to work as a good in itself. Free labor promised mobility, movement aspiration; it was the entire opposite of a system in which one person literally owned the life and labor of another. "The hired laborer with his ability to become an employer, must have every precedence over him who labors under the inducement of force," Lincoln said. And why? because "free labor has the inspiration of hope," while "pure slavery has no hope."

4. Political Economy and the Nation

For Lincoln the fundamental rule of economics was improvement, whether in the form of canals or social mobility. By the beginning of the twentieth century, Lincoln's free-labor economy increasingly began to feel dated against the background of rapid, large-scale industrialization

5. Democratic Culture

There are cultural assumptions that help to predispose a people to democracy in the first place. These assumption underly respect for the law and are currents of something more volatile and not easily seen. It was Lincoln's ideal to master himself and to be mastered by no one else, and that expressed his idea of democratic culture, as well as democracy.

6. Democracy and Civil Liberties

One of the embarrassing truths about democracies is that they can be stampeded into states of emergency and climates of crisis which end up trampling civil liberties. Lincoln's suspension of habeas corpus was a very undemocratic thing to do. The Constitution does provide for a suspension of habeas corpus in "cases of rebellion or invasion." Lincoln showed great restraint in the use of that power. Abraham Lincoln's hesitation to quash law and democratic liberties may be one of the most important gifts we inherit from him.

7. Democracy and Race

Democracy should not be about race. Democracy is based on reason, debate, persuasion, or at least reasonable self-interest, while race is a non-rational factor that thrives on ineffable intuitions of group qualities and appeals to the basest of political passions. In spite of Lincoln's reputation as the great emancipator, based on today's standards many things Lincoln said and apparently thought were racist. He was a man of his time and needed to survive in the political climate of his time.

8. Democracy and Emancipation

Unlike abolitionists of his time Lincoln manifested little energy in demanding the immediate and unconditional end of slavery. But this can be explained when his understanding of the slavery crisis and his preference for economic gradualism are taken into account. If Lincoln holds out to us anything instructive about liberal democracy, it is that liberal democracy can wear away even the irrationality of race.

James Oakes has said that Lincoln was not (as he is sometimes understood to be) an emancipator who was restrained by his limited thinking on race, but a limited thinker on race whose limitations were overthrown by his passion for emancipation.

9. Democracy's Deficits

Lincoln was aware of the deficits in a democracy, and that "popular sovereignty" could yield to unthinking passion. Both North and South, Union and Confederate, abolitionist and slaveholder had had opposing expectations and made opposing demands of God. And both were wrong. Democracy is a government for humanity, not angels, and it has to be content to be aspirational, yet to live with the pace of aspiration.

Epilogue: What If Lincoln Had Lived?

Lincoln had greater political skills than his successor Johnson, so it's possible some things would have gone smoother than the history that occurred. However, the political, economic, and social forces were such that the overall alternative history under Lincoln probably would not have been much different.
__________________
The following excerpts from this book and discussion questions were prepared by David Nelson for the Vital Conversations group.

“What Americans must do in this new age, he reasoned, is to ‘re-adopt the Declaration of Independence, and with it, the practices, and policy, which harmonize with it.’” (14)

Can we assign new understandings to ancient words? Can we reclaim the Declaration of Independence today with the many changes that have taken place?

“But Lincoln’s only attempt at actually defining democracy occurred, almost in passing, in a note he jotted on the eve of the Lincoln-Douglas debates, and at the moment, it was more of an effort to set democracy apart from slavery: ‘As I would not be a slave, so I would not be a master. This expresses my idea of democracy. Whatever differs from this to the extent of the difference, is no democracy.’” (25) “’According to our ancient faith,’ Lincoln said in 1854, ‘the just powers of government are derived from the consent of the governed.’” (25)

CONSENT was a key concept for Lincoln. What does it mean today for you?

“It did not matter that technically, democracy is a political system and slavery an economic one, for in Lincoln’s mind, the boundary between economics and politics was thin to the point of evaporation.” (30)

Discuss the relationship between politics and economics. Lincoln was more concerned with saving the union than ending slavery.

“But the premises on which they erected those rational structures were inherited from authority, and especially the authority of the Bible or Aristotle, or both in tandem. What distinguished the Enlightenment’s reason was the breaking up of the authority of those premises, and the employment of reason as an authority itself, to persuade rather than to threaten.” (38) “In Lincoln’s concept of democracy, reason stood on one side, passion and ‘outrages committed by mobs’ stood on the other.” (41)

Discuss the difference between reason and passion.

“But he (Lincoln) struggled to be guided by ‘the dictates of prudence, as well as the obligations of law,’ and labored to convince himself that reason would eventually prevail, even among the Southern public... Is it passion which will make some of us slaves, and others of us masters? It is a question which, to Lincoln’s dismay, was not precisely answered, except by an assassin’s bullet.” (47)

Can we change people’s opinions and behavior with logic and reason OR with stories and feelings? What has been your experience?

“In Lincoln’s world, there need be no slaves and no masters except the self-driven and the self-mastered. To see such a world prevail became the cause of his life.” (63)

Do you have a cause for which you are willing to live and to die?

“Lincoln’s assassination in April 1865 cut short his life, but not the trajectory of his economic reconstruction of the Union. Even had there been no civil war, it is safe to say that Lincoln’s administration would still be regarded as a hinge presidency in American history, if only for the way his economic policies inaugurated a new political generation that glorified free labor, protective tariffs, and federal encouragement for infrastructure while pushing back against the Jeffersonian glorification of agriculture and its animus against commerce...he was denounced, then and now, as the architect of a new, more expanded and intrusive federal government ... that can better expand the welfare state, regulate the economy, or adopt socialism.” (74)

The Homestead Act and the transcontinental railroad have impacted this nation and the world. How has your life be impacted by the presidency of Lincoln?

He (Lincoln) was inviting, not the descent of a veil of ignorance about the right or wrong of slavery, but a pure confession of guilt from the limited stumbling realization ---that all Americans had been invested in the evils of slavery, that all had suffered in the war that ended it –that Lincoln could hope for a democracy that rose above the giddiness of venom...There was no question that slavery was beyond some ‘consensus’, but that did not mean that its human perpetrators were beyond forgiveness.” (153)

Have we been faithful to Lincoln’s invitation for remembrance and confession? What have you learned about slavery and America in this book and in your conversations?

“Even in its faults, then and now, democracy is still the best method for people to live lives free from domination and exploitation at peace with themselves and with others, embodying ‘a progressive improvement in the condition of all men...and augmenting the happiness and value of the life to all peoples of all colors everywhere.’ Lincoln, then, was not wrong to trust that ‘our principle, however baffled, or delayed, will finally triumph...men will pass away – die – politically and naturally, but the principle will live, and live forever.” (171)

In the final weeks before the elections of 2024, are you in agreement with this final paragraph, no matter who is elected President?

[Joseph · Rating 5 out of 5]

Professor Guelzo takes a look at the state of democracy in the early 21st century compared to democracy in the time of Lincoln. He makes several valid points, and backs his assertions with historical examples. Although the book is really just one long essay broken down into chapters, it was a fast paced and compelling essay to read. A very good effort.

[Daniel Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great read! Very thought provoking in a way that made me better appreciate Lincoln and our democracy.

[Carter Kalchik · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit of an enigma. Lincoln didn’t speak or write very much at all about “democracy”. So Guelzo imagines—what if he did? He assembles a pretty academic monograph, that could be titled “Lincoln On Democracy,” composed largely of quotations. Guelzo seems to take anti-Lincoln historical revisionism personally and often finds himself defending Lincoln’s honor.

Then again, for the handful of quotations that are thrown against Lincoln, Guelzo has dozens and dozens in rejoinder. More than anything, Guelzo pursues nuance in Lincoln’s views on democracy, citizenship, slavery and race. In so doing, he often, although far from always, arrives at a positive conclusion about Lincoln.

And I think that that is a good thing. I find most Lincoln revisionism (“everybody thinks Honest Abe was a great president, but actually he was racist and bad!”) fundamentally lazy. I think an ardent progressive opponent of Lincoln today could walk away from Our Ancient Faith with their ideas sorely tested, but perhaps not fully repudiated. Just as a naive supporter might.

Guelzo’s epilogue about how the United States’ democracy has been tested under the most dire circumstances and, therefore, must be capable of responding to new dire circumstances is quite a sour note to end on, though. The feeling is certainly not unwelcome. But it’s so unengaged with the last eight years that it feels naive and lazy and without the appropriate nuance, which is utterly at odds with the painful (and, frankly, often boring) nuance of the rest of the book.

Not highly recommended for anyone but the most interested in Lincoln and the time period. Requires substantial background to fully appreciate. Very dry.

[Bailee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this examination of Lincoln’s political and moral philosophy both incredibly inspiring and sobering given where we’re at in our presidential election cycle. Inspiring in that our greatest ever president was a visionary whose ideas and commitment to furthering a prosperous liberal democracy during our darkest chapter continues to represent the “city upon a hill” that we should all strive for. Sobering in that Lincoln’s idealism, honesty, and humility which made him a great American leader are all anachronistic qualities given the profile of so many in office today.

[David Kent · Rating 5 out of 5]

With his trademark erudition, Lincoln scholar Allen Guelzo turns his sights on Democracy as he envisions it through Lincoln's eyes. The book will challenge you to think. And that is a good thing.

David J. Kent
Author, Lincoln: The Fire of Genius
President, Lincoln Group of DC

[Caleb A. Gerber · Rating 3 out of 5]

does not flow very well, as each chapter functions almost independently. The author is also liberal and claims that Lincoln was a deist, despite the fact that most of the quotes Guelzo includes in the book mention God, and Lincoln frequently praises the Christian religion. Guelzo's main goal is to defend liberal democracy from totalitarianism. He argues that Lincoln was not a racist but then undermines his own point by citing examples that suggest otherwise. Overall, it is not a great read, though the material is well-researched.

[Jake Stone · Rating 5 out of 5]

I confess that Allen Guelzo is my favorite historian and enjoy anything he writes. This book sets forth the philosophical applications we can make from Lincoln and his vision of democracy. Guelzo does not engage in hagiography. He is candid about the shortcomings of Lincoln in issues of race. However, his analysis is fair and brilliant. The program of Lincolnian democracy is one worthy of our retrieval. Whether the woke left or woke right, the voices that are the loudest often view the American experiment a failure. In Lincoln’s day, socialistic Marx and confederate aristocrats said the same. Lincoln offers us a pattern for revisiting the fountain of the American Founders and reinvigorating the American spirit.

[Urey Patrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Guelzo is not just one of my favorite historians, but also one of my favorite writers. In this book he looks at the foundational concepts, principles, that constituted the United States in its formation – the Declaration of Independence, the reliance upon reason and the intermediary aspects of law, the cultural ethos of the as then constituted population, the accepted societal and moral codes that underlay the natural rights on which American governance was erected. He concurrently examines Lincoln’s embodiment of those principles and mores, analyzing and assessing Lincoln’s governance and his adherence to basic principles. It is fascinating, and an excellent and objective study of Lincoln and his adherence to the basic principles and practices of democracy... juxtaposed against those very same principles and practices as ostensibly espoused today.

Lincoln was, of course, a complicated figure. He believed in a basic set of fundamental principles as espoused in the Declaration, and he was firm in his commitment to them, as he was consistent in his application of them to governance. So many today would judge Lincoln unfavorably by rigidly progressive standards that are distorting so much of American thought and life, but Guelzo demonstrates that is both unfair, and misleading (to be circumspect about it). Lincoln was a man of his times – he loathed slavery, but for reasons of natural rights and not racial equivalence, to briefly cite one example. The result was expansion of the implementation of the foundational concept of equality – not the modern concept of equity. And we are better for it.

The Declaration defined the immutable principles upon which America was founded, and the preservation of which is the purpose of government: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness”. This is the essence of American exceptionalism – the establishment of a democratic government based on intangible principle, not on the accident of birth, divine right, tribal proclivity, racial equivalence, or any of the other traditional explanations for ruling power. The Constitution was the architectural plan for the government necessary to promote and protect the fundamental principles detailed in the Declaration. That was Lincoln’s conviction and inspiration, and he was true to his standards throughout his life.

Guelzo is a compelling advocate of American exceptionalism, American democracy, and of Lincoln as an incomparable but thoroughly human, and thus inexorably flawed, leader. This book is as much a tutorial in American democracy, as it was designed and as it is, as it is an examination of Lincoln’s inculcation of those basic principles and practices. Should be required reading, both for the general civics education as for the historical account of Lincoln and his implementation of that civics lesson, including the final chapter in which he speculates on what might have happened differently if Lincoln had lived. Guelzo is a realist - an objective, perceptive and insightful historian and analyst.

[Joe · Rating 4 out of 5]

For a book that spans fewer than 200 pages, Guelzo's latest study of Lincoln covers a lot of ground. Based almost entirely on Lincoln's own words in speeches, letters, executive orders and records of conversations, Guelzo gives us a penetrating look into Lincoln's views on democratic governance and its vulnerabilities, citizenship, political participation, societal behavior, labor and capital, self-betterment, presidential power and, of course, slavery and racism. While Guelzo's admiration for Lincoln (his life's work) is apparent on every page, he does not shy away from raising his faults and foibles. It seems to me that, for Guelzo, Lincoln, despite his shortcomings, is the paragon of a democracy's public servant and the best example of its citizenry. Whether his example provides useful remedies to heal what ails America's democracy today is an open question. Guelzo hopes so and so do I.

[Ken Mattes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Published in 2024, this book reviews the policies and tenure of Lincoln as President and expresses perspectives on Lincoln’s presidency and around the concepts of democracy, freedom, the United States and the risks associated with “revenge” after the civil war.
Worth considering in light of our turbulent political jousting in 2024.

Another book to consider more as an autobiography of Lincoln is There was Light but Jon Meacham

And there was light by Jon Meacham
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/and-...

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would give this a 5 for content and a 3 for the enjoyment factor. This is more of an academic study and collection of essays on how Lincoln viewed democracy. I love all things Lincoln and Guelzo is one of the top historians in the field so this was a no-brainer purchase and read for me. I think I would only recommend it to those already familiar with Lincoln and looking for an intellectual read more than any type of narrative.

[Ed · Rating 5 out of 5]

An outstanding survey of Lincoln's political philosophy. If only every American voter and public official would read the introduction for its description of the nature of democracy, and the epilogue for the author's thoughts on what would have happened if Lincoln had not been killed. Faith in America, which Lincoln held close to his heart, might be revived in this discouraging age.

[Boston64329 · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short book highliting Lincoln's greatness and faults. He was much more than saving the union and limited emancipation.

[Neil Blanchard · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great, honest explanation of Lincoln. He was more complicated than most of us think, but just as relevant now as back then. The book itself rambled a bit.

[Joe Earle · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent presentation of democracy and one of its greatest champions.

[Jeff Edwards · Rating 5 out of 5]

Guelzo’s knowledge, understanding, and specific expertise on the facts and speculated thinking of our 16th President brings an enlightened grasp of our country’s desires and hopes. This is relevant interpretations of the most significant period in America’s history. I recommend reading it slowly and deliberately, giving yourself time to reflect what’s before you.

[DJ Holecek · Rating 4 out of 5]

Completed.

[Dick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Let’s open with an interesting fact that I had not known. There documents that reveal Abraham Lincoln pardoned Biden’s great-great-grandfather.

( https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-...)

Allen Guelzo is widely recognized as a leading Lincoln scholar. I have at least one other book he has written, but cannot find it right now with all the books I have. Guelzo has a wide variety of his own sources which is reflected in his extensive index and notes. This author rises to one of the experts on Lincoln and has the perspective of how to see Lincoln in the context of his times – from early in his life, to the beginning of his presidency to the last days.

He raises – based on Lincoln’s evolution as a man, politician and human being, like all of us. A good deal of what you read can be pondered as we watch this country in this current time, going through a great reset. He raises the question: does Lincoln serve as a source of wisdom, his actions and how he adapted and adjusted as things and events demanded he do?

Lincoln believed – as the author points out in Lincoln’s words and deeds suggest – that the idea that we would “recover consent,” with politics reflecting the will of the people rather than being “imposed by a self-designated oligarchy”, and that we would “embrace an equality in which no privileged groups claim superior sanction for power.”

Further, on the economic front, that as a country would develop “an American system that protects American industry and productivity, [and] empowers and organizes workers and small producers”. Moreover we as a nation would restore true citizenship (for all), and then have “a democracy which embodies Lincoln’s own virtues – resilience, humility, persistence, work and dignity”.

Lincoln put forward a free-labor vision where wage laborers, with enough pluck(maybe some luck, hard work, and adaptability, could graduate to the ranks of producers or professionals, much like the way Lincoln rose from flatboat man to successful lawyer to congressman to president.

Lincoln faced criticism for his administration’s violation of civil liberties in the name of winning the Civil War. These include the imprisonment of suspected subversives without trial, closing newspapers, and punishing a Copperhead Congressman, among others. We are not there as a county at this time, but there do seem to be red flags waving and some allegations relative to the current administration. What we might see after the election in November of 2024 is filled with conjecture.

Lincoln’s powerful justifications for his own actions – can be found in his famous
Corning letter –https://www.abrahamlincolnonline.org/... . In it Lincoln did not minimize the emergency steps he had taken. Rather, he invoked the language of the Constitution itself, under which, peacetime rights could be suspended during rebellions when the public safety required it. Lincoln was a strong and adherent supporter of the Constitution and was convinced that the Founding Fathers had divine direction in the writing of that document. He used a doctor’s approach in saying that like a very sick patient, the nation needed radical treatment because it faced an existential threat—when the threat was gone the radical treatment would stop.

The author does not agree with the positive comments of some Lincoln enthusiasts, who claim that Lincoln had a long-term plan for racial equality, which he only presented in piecemeal, to avoid frightening white voters. Not surprising as Lincoln knew he could not get out ahead of his constituents for risking losing them and his leadership thereof.

Rather, the author presents the damning evidence of Lincoln’s white supremacist racism throughout much of his career, which included his denunciation of abolitionists, his opposition to Black voting rights, his refusal even to support Blacks’ right to testify against whites, the Matson case (in which he legally defended an enslaver not the enslaved), and Lincoln’s offer to colonize African Americans outside the United States.

I disagree with the author in this area to some degree. Lincoln did have long term plans for equality in that a few days before he was murdered by a coward, he spoke to extending the vote to “certain Negroes” as in those who fought for the union and were “intelligent” from the back portico of the Executive Mansion just days before he was shot. Booth was there and was quoted as having said that, that was Lincoln's l as speech. He had – toward the end of the war – sent emissaries to southern states (do not remember if it was Alabama, Mississippi or Louisiana) to run for office and extend the vote to all, including negro men.

Of course, Lincoln’s position changed. The anti-abolitionist opponent of civil rights became the Great Emancipator and even suggested enfranchising some Black people. Rather the author points out underlying commitment to democracy, which made him oppose slavery from the start, as well as to natural rights . . . finally led him to equality’s borders just as his life was cut short”. In the author’s view Lincoln did not evolve, he simply worked out rigorously the implications of his longstanding beliefs. I vigorously disagree on that front.

Guelzo offers a balanced discussion of Lincoln's expansion of government and abridgement of civil liberties during the war, and considers whether federalism suffered or was enhanced by Lincoln’s administration.

There is the expected epilogue, “What If Lincoln Had Lived?” reveals Lincoln's views regarding the American body politic as we continue to wrestle with the meaning of democracy, which “is still the best method for people to live lives free from domination and exploitation.”

Total pages 247, of which 171 are actual narrative, the rest is references, etc.
A brilliant, mostly evenhanded, and timely political history.

[Joe Stack · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a thoughtful, well-reasoned, and succinct analysis of Lincoln’s perception of democracy and its relevance for today.

There is a slipperiness to Lincoln’s thinking and his statements on race, and Guelzo wrestles with Lincoln’s words and actions on race and the views of his critics, then and now, giving the reader a more nuanced understanding of Lincoln than is often presented by his critics and revisionists.

It is the author’s conclusion that “Even had there no civil war, it is safe to say that Lincoln’s administration would still be regarded as a hinge presidency in American history, if only for the way his economic policies inaugurated a new political generation that glorified free labor, protective tariffs, and federal encouragement for infrastructure while pushing back against the Jeffersonian glorification of agriculture and its animus against commerce.” (p. 73)

This book should appeal to Lincoln aficionados and to anyone following the struggle to maintain democracy or to understand what democracy is.

********************
Notes:

From Chapter 2: In 1838, 62 years after Independence, when Lincoln is 29, the nation had experienced:

Formation of political parties
The 1795 Whiskey Rebellion crisis
Aaron Burr’s plot to take over and create an independent state west of the Mississippi (1805-06)
War of 1812
1819 economic collapse
1828, Andrew Jackson serves as “democratic autocrat” (orders Indian removal, his presidential appointments are a “spoils system, and wrecks havoc on banking system.)
1837, Depression

“Without some sense that there are truths which not even majorities can defy, democracy becomes rudderless, hollow, morally relative, and difficult to sacrifice for.” (p. 13)

For Lincoln, the slavery threatened democracy. He held on to 4 forces that supported democracy: “property ownership, religious morality, toleration, and electioneering.” (p. 80)

“In the largest sense, widespread ownership of property was the physical embodiment of the Constitution’s prohibition of ‘titles of nobility” . . . Property provided the basis on which one gave consent and the reason for consenting at all.”

Religion structured the life of families and set the rules for personal and private virtue.

Toleration meant equality, and “Religious toleration was the most obvious form toleration took in America, and in many ways, it was the most ingenious achievement of the American democracy, disarming the power of religious prejudices which had cast a long shadow of murderous warfare over Europe. American religious toleration was also more than the condescending indifference of the great for the few; it sprang directly from the assumption of liberal democratic equality, and a respect for the liberal individual that did not occlude disagreement.” (p. 82)

For Lincoln, adherence to the law - even if flawed - meant stability. Democracy was built on law and reasoning, not mob passion or unthinking passion.

“ . . . liberal democracy is based on assumptions about individuals and the rights they possess as individuals, not on group identities.” (p. 109)

In Lincoln’s 19th Century, elections were celebrated passionately with parades, band-playing, cheers and applauses, drinking, fights, and betting.

Lincoln was not a moral purist . . . Democracy is tethered to natural law. (p. 140)

For Lincoln, the purpose of reason in government was to correct mistakes in public thinking, not to make concessions to them. (p. 141)

“Democracy could not survive, he (Lincoln) warned, by leaving fundamental moral issues to be decided by majority vote.” (p. 145)

P. 146: During his first two years as president, Lincoln had to contend with:
generals who didn’t know how to win
draftees who didn’t want to fight
financiers who feared risk
journalists who indulged in hysterical invective
whites who didn’t want to compete with freed slaves in the marketplace

[Joe · Rating 3 out of 5]

With the whirlwind of the current administration here in the United States and the ceaseless headlines from the Oval Office flipping the world upside down, many may observe that these are unprecedented times (for better or worse). The news has an intoxicating effect of blinding the rearview mirror into the past, with fear washing over many when wondering if the road ahead will be pockmarked with strife and disaster. It sparks the question: is that classic quip from pundits and observers, “Our country has never been this divided,” finally coming true?

Books like ‘Our Ancient Faith’ are appreciated for putting to bed some of the fears surrounding the future with a reminder that this country has faced much worse in its past, with none being more devastating than the civil war. The passions that were swept into that four-year deluge extinguished over 600,000 lives and the pernicious system of chattel slavery, and the man who held the reins of fate in piecing together the fractured union did so through his unwavering devotion to the idea of democratic government. It is this devotion and Lincoln’s actions stemming from it that form the core of this book.

Some of the arguments Guelzo makes are largely convincing, with one pertaining to the lack of authoritarian measures Lincoln enacted during wartime. While many of Lincoln's detractors state the opposite, claiming the suspension of habeas corpus was dictatorial in nature, Guelzo states how astounding it was for Lincoln to later revert such wartime measures, especially when many lesser men would have used a civil war as an excuse to expand their own power permanently.

There are other intriguing cases to be found within the book, but I’d be hard pressed to recite them. That leads me to the single biggest flaw of this book, and why I rated this as low as I did: the writing. Each chapter reads as an academic paper; it is dry and detail-heavy, with little in the way of memorable anecdotes. For some, this is fine. Perhaps this is just the necessary style for the book, since it’s not as much a history of Lincoln as it is his philosophy and actions revolving around preserving democracy. A topic like this is subjected to many differing views and complexities, so it can be argued that the academic tone and presentation is necessary to plot out clear points for the reader. I can accept that, but I still don’t find it much fun to read. I can’t recommend this book to the lay reader, but for hardcore Lincoln fans, this might be worth a read.

[Tyler · Rating 4 out of 5]

How did Abraham Lincoln feel about the concept of democracy? Allen Guelzo reflects on this question in his latest book. Readers who want a book on this subject that is less academic should consult Jon Meacham's And There Was Light, which I read last year. This book was a denser read, but I recommend this one as well. After noting the decline in the number of people living in democratic nations during the early twenty-first century, Guelzo declares that the memory of one person should nevertheless "confound the doubters" of democracy: America's sixteenth president. He then digs into Lincoln's writings to uncover what Lincoln believed about the idea. He finds that Lincoln believed in the idea of transforming one's life that had taken him from a humble flatboat rider into politics, and that had the potential to transform other lives in a democratic system. In other words, a person could progress from working for wages to employing other people for wages in a democratic nation like the United States. Lincoln believed the country could thrive on this kind of dynamic, where no person was a slave and no person was a master. Guelzo devotes an additional chapter to Lincoln's views on economic matters, emphasizing the president's support for tariffs to protect domestic manufacturers, a National Banking Act that called for federally printed currency, a Homestead Act that opened western land to Americans, and a railroad that would span the nation. These acts suggest that his vision for the direction in which democracy should go would have been influential even without a Civil War. Other chapters focus on Lincoln's handling of civil liberties during the war, his views on race and the emancipation of enslaved people, and his views on the flaws of democracy. Guelzo is quick to note through all of this that Lincoln did not always stay consistent in his views and he does not always admire Lincoln's views. But he also wants readers to know that as the son of an immigrant who has developed a great affection for democracy, he believes that this system of government should endure and that 21st century citizens would benefit from understanding Lincoln's views on it.

[Chandler Collins · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is an excellent account of Abraham Lincoln's political and economic vision. Lincoln was certainly a complex man, and he led through a very tumultuous time in US history that required a very nuanced form of leadership. Guelzo ultimately writes this book to defend Lincoln and his vision of democracy from its current cultural despisers. Some today see Lincoln as a bigoted racist who only desired to restore the Union and did not actually care about the status of slaves. Some today also accuse Lincoln of exercising dictatorial powers as president and see him as a leader who paved the way for tyrannical political leadership. Guelzo is not convinced by any of this. At the same time, Guelzo is not blind to some of Lincoln's inconsistencies and complexities--especially when it comes to Lincoln's views on race. Lincoln was also not a proponent of big government, insisting that all the things that people can do just as well for themselves, the government should not interfere on these matters.

We also see how Lincoln prized reason over passion in his democratic vision. Lincoln contented that the confederacy was nothing more than a mob ruled by passions. It was even a military state. Lincoln also wanted to prove that democracy could be ruled by reason according to the law, and so confound the European belief that democracies would eventually resort to rule by passion. In democracy, political sovereignty resides in the people of a nation. For Lincoln, self-government is conducted by reason based on the law.

According to Lincoln, commerce as much as law was the enemy of passion. Interestingly, Lincoln was for tariffs on imported goods, believing that if something could be created at home as easily as it could be created abroad, then the country should opt for the former option. Also fascinating is Guelzo's summary of the key components of democracy in Lincoln's vision. I particularly enjoyed the discussion on property ownership and religious morality/toleration in a democratic society.

All in all, this is a great work on historic political philosophy. If you are a fan of Abraham Lincoln, or if you desire to understand the democratic roots of the United States, then I highly recommend this book.

[Patrick Jennings · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book although centered on Lincoln is about democracy and how it strains and gets kicked in the ass, but has up to today always come back and affirmed the principles of equal representation under the law and the right of every Citizen to have a say in the way they are governed. And even though today democracy has been under some intense pressure from some that seem to believe that a dictatorship may be a better form of government, it still strongly prevails.

Lincoln was a flawed person as we all are, but struggled through one of the most difficult periods in America's history. He did it with thoughtful insight (reasoning) and strong ethical beliefs learned and then nurtured throughout his life. Slavery in this country was always destined to failure, but after the passage of the Kansas Nebraska Act, the end was not as readily apparent. The Emancipation Proclamation ended it once and for all, but in reality oppression remains a problem in this country even today. My question is should any of us feel the need to look down on anyone for any reason? The answer is we should not! Let's learn from Lincoln and men like Fredrick Douglas, Martin Luther King, John Kennedy, Thurgood Marshall, John Lewis, Barrack Obama and many others that "all men are created equal".

Allen Guelzo has in this book shown us how Lincoln struggled, at times within his own mind and with his writing and public speaking, but drawing form his strong moral background made the decisions that were right for his time, and turned out to be right for all time. We should all affirm our belief in democracy. A really good and inspiring book!

[Sue · Rating 3 out of 5]

Our Ancient Faith: Lincoln, Democracy, and the American experiment by Lincoln expert Allen . Guelzo was a challenge for me to understand and digest. As a citizen-reader, I found some of my thoughts coincide with the stumbling blocks to our present-day democracy that the author noted. For example, the complexity of our present life makes our bureaucracy even greater in number and less effective or efficient. So, we have career bureaucrats receiving govt. pensions. Also, "modern democracy may have more to fear from technicians, and especially technicians who do not even have to occupy public office to threaten the infrastructure of democracy." Our national defense relies on cyber security.
Democracy rests on consent, majority rule and the law. The worldwide web is not democratic in the sense of our Constitution; therefore, modern technology tests or strains the fundamental tenets of our society.
In Lincoln's mind, according to Guelzo, {the] "purpose of reason in government was to correct mistakes in public thinking, not to make concessions to them."
Another reading would benefit my understanding of the Lincoln principles Guelzo knits together from his letters, speeches and actions. Lincoln's mind could hold many and contrary thoughts at one time. A rare gift I have not.

[Michael Kruse · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mostly interesting (for me) for cites to Lincoln’s Collected Works and for the references to Lincoln’s legal cases and briefs, which I’m eager to look through.

While I really enjoyed his Reconstruction book, I found this one disappointing. Some of the claims about Lincoln seem oddly supported. For instance, Guelzo says Lincoln was “suspicious” of arguments from necessity, but then supports that with a quote from an address to the Pennsylvania assembly in which Lincoln merely says that he takes no pleasure in thinking it may be necessary to use military force against the seceding States. Then he gives a number of examples in which Lincoln makes arguments from necessity.

I also found the references to Rawls as some kind of relativist quite odd and distracting. Rawls makes quite robust assumptions about the individuals behind the veil of ignorance, and seems to leave little to chance when it comes to the basic stricter that those individuals would select. I wonder if any Rawls scholar—or critic—would think that Rawls’ deliberators would entertain pro-slavery as a viable option. It seems a mystery to me why he would include such a discussion unless he thought he needed a foil to his version of Lincoln.

[Matt- History on the Hudson · Rating 5 out of 5]

In Our Ancient Faith, Allen Guelzo crafts an intellectual biography of Abraham Lincoln, shedding light on his profound views on democracy and the American Experiment. Structured as a collection of essays exploring various facets of Lincoln's philosophy and its evolution over the years, Guelzo provides a fresh, insightful perspective on Lincoln as a thinker. This book serves as a timely reminder of the stakes in our current political climate and offers valuable insights into how one of America's greatest minds approached the concept of democracy.

One of the standout aspects of Our Ancient Faith is Guelzo's thoughtful examination of Lincoln's stance on slavery and abolition, delving into how these views are often misunderstood or misrepresented by historians. He also explores the ways in which Lincoln's perspectives evolved over time, adding depth and nuance to the narrative. Additionally, Guelzo highlights Lincoln's connection to Enlightenment thinkers, showcasing how their ideals influenced his views on liberty and governance. I thoroughly enjoyed reading Our Ancient Faith and highly recommend it to anyone seeking a compelling refresher on democracy and Lincoln’s enduring legacy.

[Kathleen]

No ecopies in the library system. Will need to request a hard copy.

Reviewed by Robert Lowenstein in WSJ on February 4, 2024.

I found these two paragraphs interesting:
“Our Ancient Faith” is brimming with worthy insights and well-selected quotations. Mr. Guelzo observes that Lincoln’s collected works, which span eight volumes, mention “democracy” only 137 times. The word doesn’t appear in the Gettysburg Address. Lincoln defined it only once, cryptically but powerfully, in a note before debating Stephen Douglas: “As I would not be a slave, so I would not be a master. This expresses my idea of democracy.”

Mr. Guelzo oddly omits the context for his book’s title, plucked from Peoria: “If the negro is a man, why then my ancient faith teaches me that ‘all men are created equal.’ ” He has plenty to say on Lincoln’s view of race relations (as distinct from slavery) and at times gets bogged down, alternately as Lincoln’s prosecutor and defender. The trouble with combing Lincoln’s speeches for evidence of racism is that most of them were delivered to white voters who, Lincoln knew, would never vote for a party associated with racial equality.